Colombia in the dock on human rights
Colombia’s record on human rights will face international scrutiny in April when the United Nations Human Rights Council carries out its Universal Periodic Review on all member states.
It is expected that Vice President Angelino Garzon will lead the Colombian delegation at the hearing should his health permit, and he will be keen to emphasise the progress Colombia has made in protecting the human rights of its citizens.
The previous review in 2008 saw 139 recommendations made to the Colombian government, and the progress Colombia has made in responding to these recommendations will be examined during the hearing in April.
Key among these was “to effectively investigate and prosecute crimes against human rights defenders and punish those responsible”; “to intensify efforts to combat all forms of impunity”; “to continue efforts in seeking to break the linkages between elements of the armed forces and State security forces”; and “to guarantee access to justice and the right to reparation to victims in a non-discriminatory manner”.
Colombia’s record in these areas will be viewed in the light of the revelations of widespread extra-judicial killings known as the “false positives” scandal (during the Uribe years), as well as accusations that paramilitaries who have carried out human rights violations do so with impunity.
The Colombia government will, however, be keen to point to the peace process with the FARC and important reforms such as the “victims law” adopted in 2011 which allowed relatives of those killed in the country’s armed conflict to be compensated.
Prior to the review sessions in April, the process gives the opportunity for submissions of evidence from the Colombian Government, independent experts on human rights as well as NGOs. The review session on the 23 April takes the form of UN member states submitting questions to the Colombian delegation.
A report is then prepared by a troika of member states assigned randomly – in Colombia’s case, Gabon, India and Ecuador, and will contain recommendations on which the government should act.
I hope the UN will also do something against the countries, which are financing the human rights violation. These countries sould be obligated to show a plan how the will decrease the use of illegal drugs from Colombia, and if they are not able to do so, they should pay a kind of tax to Colombia, that Colombia can pay for the clean up he mess, which the drug users do to Colombia.
Be nice wouldn´t it! Somehow I think the Human Rights issue will continue to be dominated by those who view the paramilitaries and the state as the only actors. We know different, of course. Cheers.